Disclaimer: Oh I'm too excited to write a disclaimer. I'm going to Asia YAY!
For me it seems like an eternity until I finally get to go to Asia! Not that I won't miss this story and hearing from you all! You all have been very good to this story so far and I want to thank you for that. I hope you'll still wait for the next chapter while I'm away. It'll only be like a two month wait. Haha but you can be sure that if I can get my hands on an Asian computer I'll try to type up the latest chappie!
Now to thank the people who matter most. (Besides Ron and Hermione and Me of course!LOL)
Mijy: I'm glad you liked it! Yeah Ron can really get frustrating sometimes. He's too shy with Hermione about his feelings! Thank you for reviewing too by the way!
trikkity: tofay hahah. At first I thought you met touche like we saw in Hope and Faith last week lol. Thanks for liking me yo yeah yo LOL. Oh and remember when I thought your name was TRICK KITTY not trikkity? lol. Come to see me before I leeaavvveee!
Chrismukkah-hunnie: Oh don't feel the need to apologize. I'll live lol. Thanks for liking the last chapter so much! I'm not sure where I get all these ideas. They only seem to come while I write fanfiction. Yet with original fiction it takes me a bit longer to think of things. Good luck with thinking of things to write up!
Siriusfan9: Yeah Sirius totally rocks and it was sad to see him go! I don't know ANYONE who's perfect lol. And we all know full well Harry and Ron sure aren't. I'm going to Singapore/Bangladesh/India. (I have Bengali-Chinese-Yemeni blood in me! I directly descend from those cultures!) Thank you and thank you for everything you said!
Devilsdream-15: Thanks a bunch! Your review was greatly appreciated! I'm glad you think I'm keeping the quality of the chapters consistent!
Miss-Court-A-Doo: I believe she very much does! LOL. I'll give away this bit of information because I'm going away for so long! Thank you for your review also!
MeryKey-7: Wow. You're smart! You caught on to my secret foreshadow and the weird message I spread through Ron and Hermione's conversation in the Diagon Alley Cafe. Bravo! I can't say whether she meant Ron or Seamus but I can say that she will end up hurting one of them. Or both. Yeah Seamus' proposal is totally coming up! Thanks for reviewing too!
lindsey-31: Yeah the blind guy is pretty cool. I'm not sure where I got him from but I think he's a combination of someone I've either read about or seen on tv and of someone I've met. He's wise enough to give Ron some advice he'll really need in this future. I'm glad you're keeping it in your memory! I sure am! Thanks for the review too!
Jerri: No thank you for reviewing! It really makes my day! I like your enthusiasm and I love it when people beg! LOL.
Silver Ice: Spooky? I've never heard it put that way but I suppose it is pretty spooky! The Past Photography is a pretty cool place and I'd probably want to go in there once or twice! I'm sure everyone is relieved Hermione isn't taking some rendevous with Seamus for Christmas! Thanks for your review too!
Bhekie: Good job by picking up on that! I leave oddly entertaining facts in my stories that most rarely pick up on! Ron might kill himself because of what thing? Obviously I have not read my story properly! Thank you for reviewing too!(what is that thing really?)
bethzc: Haha. Is that an "aw" as in cute or as in god damn it! LOL. Nice to hear you enjoyed it and thank you for the review!
AmyChris: Thank you! Hermione had better like the picture after all the work Ron went through to get it. Like going back in time! Thanks for saying my story rocks too!
owlpostagain: Really? Me? One of two people on your favourites list to update in the last few weeks? I...I feel so honored! I'd like to thank all the little people...LOL. j/ks. Thanks for reviewing! I hope you like this chappie as much as the last!
ilikechicken: Thanks! I happy that you got the photography thing figured out in the end. I suppose my writing can sometimes be a tad confusing. Thanks for the review!
airhead14: LOL. That's the spirit. Skip math a bit to catch up on fanfiction. Sounds like something worthy of me! haha. I hope you get through all your homework alright and thank you for reviewing!
Nandinha Shinomori: Yeah that's Ron's usual careless nature for sure. The flashback was endearing to me too but I didn't exaggerate much on it because it seems too much of JKR's turf! I'm glad you think I've got the characters to a par! My cousins lived in Rio and they miss it so much! I've seen pictures they have and it looks BOO-TI-FUL! Most languages are pretty tricky sometimes. I could never forget this story and disappoint you all! LOL! Your English is fab! Thanks for the well-wishes for my trip to Asia and yes as you said "Now...the Christmas!"
LunaAqua: Alright, alright. Hermione is beginning to crack! She's starting to see how wonderful our weedle Ronniekins really is! Thanks for reviewing too!
reihino2003: Thanks all around for your mass support!
Wow! I won't waste this space with chit-chat! Here's the chapter and it truly is dedicated to all you awesome reviewers out there!
"Siiilllent Niiiight. Hooolly Niiiight..."
Ron wished he could kill himself right here. Right now. He thought about drowning himself in eggnog but decided against it. After all Hermione would soon be here and that was all that mattered. He and Hermione would be able to spend all today and tomorrow, betterly known as Christmas, in each other's presence. He'd also set up mistletoe stragedically among the Burrow. He put on over the doorway to the guest bedroom where he knew Hermione'd be spending the night.
"-Mooother and Chiiilld-"
Mrs. Weasley's voice cracked yet she still continued to sing. It was another Weasley tradition which Ron despised. Mrs. Weasley signing them all the usual Christmas Carols while Percy played the piano. It had all started when Percy had bought the god damned piano the year after Ron had gotten out of Hogwarts. Now to most this wouldn't seem so bad a predicament but then again most had never heard Molly Weasley's singing voice. It was like the moaning of a hundred evils. Like the sound of nails against a chalkboard. Like the relationship between Hermione Seamus. It was just WRONG.
"Alright" Mrs. Weasley said stopping to catch her breath, "I've finished Silent Night. Any other requests?"
"I'd like to request you to stop the squawking coming out of your mother" Fred grumbled under this breath causing Ginny to snicker and Luna to glare.
"How about the twelve days of Christmas?" Luna suggested eagerly. Somehow Luna actually enjoyed these retched carols.
Mrs. Weasley's mouth opened and just as the first note was out of her mouth the doorbell rang to the relief of one and all.
"I'll get it" Ron said jumping at the oppurtunity to hopefully skip the first four days of Christmas. He opened the door and ushered a frozen George, Daphne and Hermione into the house.
"The weather's pretty bad, ain't it?" Ron frowned looking at the three of them. They were soaked and most of them had chapped lips and snowflakes gracing their hair.
"What ever gave you that idea?" George said dryly.
"I heard Witch FM making a broadcast today about how this was the worst snowfall in Britain in over twenty years" Hermione explained.
"Witch FM's probably wrong. It always predicts the weather flimsy. The best station to listen to for weather is Floo Forty-eight" Ron clarified.
"Well actually Witch FM was correct" Hermione said simply.
"How do you know that?" Ron implored incredulously.
"Well after I'd heard it on the radio I would've had to research it to make sure it was right, wouldn't I?" Hermione said matter-of-factly.
Ron looked at her terrified but George laughed, "Only you Hermione..."
He took off his coat and then preceded to take off Daphne's. Ron noticed her stomach had perturbed quite a bit since the last time they'd met.
"How long has it been?" Ron asked gesturing towards her pregnant form.
"Three months and counting" Daphne said carelessly.
"Aww...how sweet" Hermione commented and she reached out her hand possibly to give Daphne's stomach a jolly pat.
"Hermione if you even try to rub my belly again godspeed I will suck the fresh blood right out of you" Daphne said angrily.
Hermione and Ron looked rather frightened but George mouthed, "It's the pregnancy talking."
"Apparently the pregnancy does all the talking" Ron whispered in Hermione's ear.
She laughed appreciatively. Ron beamed at her causing her to blush. That was weird. Hermione didn't usually blush because Ron smiled at her. They awkwardly made their way to the living room where everyone was chanting, "On the eighth day of Christmas my true love gave to me..."
Most of Christmas Eve sped by uneventfully. Well as uneventfully as it gets with the Weasleys. Around seven they'd caught some Wizarding Paparatzzi trying to peep in through a window in the kitchen. Fred and George had gone to get rid of them but didn't return until half an hour later. They wouldn't say what they did but Ron noticed George had a twig in his hair.
At ten Harry and Percy had been caught under the mistletoe at the same time and hadn't given each other a kiss. This caused a great debate to arise among the Weasley family. Half of them (Ron, Fred and George) had wanted Harry and Percy to kiss. It was the rules of the mistletoe after all. But for some reason neither Harry nor Percy looked forward to the propect so the other half of them defended Harry and Percy valiantly saying that you didn't have to kiss the person if it was someone of the same gender. It almost seemed as if good would prevail over evil until Ron had brought up the point of gays, lesbians and bisexuals. In the end a twist compromise was made and Hermione had to kiss Percy on the cheek on Harry's behalf. Ron thought sourly about how Percy had gotten more lucky with Hermione in the last three minutes than he had in the last three months.
At Midnight when they majority of the household was asleep Ron found he himself could not find slumber. He tossed and turned in his old room. Charlie who was practically the only other bachelor in the house besides Ron and Fred slept soundly on the bed next to him. Ron watched as his brother's chest fall up and down. He sighed. He could only hope to be as peaceful as that someday.
He threw this blanket off himself. He felt sweaty even though it was a cold night. He went to his window and stared out at the sky. Full Moon. It reminded him briefly of Lupin but he quickly pushed that thought to the back of his mind. It was no use dwelling on the dead. He was almost frightened of where he'd have to go tomorrow. Christmas, as special as it was, had it's downsides.
He felt rather downcast and chose to cheer himself by checking in on Hermione. She probably looked adorable while she slept. He urged himself to not making any creaking sounds on the wooden planks below him. There were about fifteen different people he could accidently wake up if he so much as made a creak. Yet when he did make a creaking sound he sounded hismelf profusely but luckily enough no one awoke.
When at last he did make it to Hermione's room he was rather alarmed to see she was not there. Her bed was empty and her blanket thrown aside. Tousled bedsheets showed signs of an obvious restless sleeper.
Suddenly someone grabbed him around the waist from behind and placed a hand over his mouth to stop him from screaming. His first reaction was to panic and get away from the psycho holding him as fast he could.
"It's only me" Hermione's voice whispered.
Ron could practically feel his muscles begin to relax then tense again. Hermione was holding him. She was pressed against him. He felt her hand slide off his mouth and completely defied odds by wrapping itself around Ron's chest. Ron closed his eyes and tried not to think too hard about the fact that he could feel Hermione's chest pushed up against his back. He felt her place her cheek bewteen his shoulder blades and left her sigh calmly.
"What were you doing in my bedroom?" Hermione said breaking the gentle silence and asking the question Ron dreaded she would.
"I-I thought I heard a sound coming from this room" Ron replied shortly.
"You're lying" Hermione snapped quickly. He felt her grip his chest tightly and bit his tongue to stop himself from moaning.
"Yes" Ron shrugged.
Silence.
"Well don't you plan to tell me the real reason?" Hermione inquired, "I'll let you go if you do."
Ron's guffaws shook them both. She thought he wanted her to let go?
"Who says I want you to let go?" Ron joked then wished he didn't. It instantly caused her to release him. He turned and noticed she was wearing a lilac dressing gown and her hair was even more out of control than usual.
"Mione, I'm sorry that was stupid of me to say-
"Oh shut up" Hermione said slightling teasingly, "So are you going to tell me what you're doing in my bedroom or not?"
"Technically it's not your bedroom" Ron started.
"Ron!" Hermione scolded.
"Ok, ok. I couldn't get to sleep so I just decided to check up on you" Ron stated dumbly.
"Why me?" Hermione asked arching an eyebrow.
"Erm-well I dunno" Ron responded feeling his ears go red.
Another quiet drifted through the room.
"I'm glad you did" Hermione said shyly and Ron noticed her face looked rather red too.
"You are?" Ron questioned in rush.
She nodded, "But I dunno why."
"Oh well-right. I guess I'd better get going to bed you know" Ron supplied.
"Right" Hermione said sensibly, "Right you go on ahead."
Even though she didn't need to she walked him to the doorway of her room.
"Mistletoe" Ron said pointing above them not quite paying attention to what Hermione was saying. God bless Mistletoe.
Hermione looked up also and flushed. She fumbled with her fingers for a second. She looked twitchy and nervous. Her eyes were darting about his face studying it completely. She turned away from him and stood there unsure of what to do next.
"Hermione...?" Ron asked weakly. She turned quickly and gave him a swift kiss. It wasn't a kiss on the cheek either. A real kiss on his mouth. And he wasn't dreaming! Even though it was too quick to taste any of it, it was enough for Ron to savor for a long time to come.
"Goodnight Ron" Hermione said curtly.
"Night Herms" Ron said in return using a nickname he hadn't used on her in a long time. She frowned thoroughly.
"Will you stop calling me that!"
For most Christmas morning is the most magical time of year. Presents underneath the beautifully decorated tree. Stockings stuffed to the brim. The smell of gingerbread men baking in the oven. The propect of another fresh blanket of snow outside. And lastly the though of being able to celebrate it all with all those you love.
It was the same with the Weasleys at one time. But ever since the Second War a newer, darker, tradition had began. After the usual celebrating of Christmas morning every single member of the family including Harry, Luna, Hermione, Fleur, Daphne, and Penelope of course, were suited up in robes of pitch black. They looked ready to attend a funeral yet that was not where they were going to go.
Everyone wore solemn expressions. It was their duty to go pay respects to this man. This great wizard. He had saved them all at least once from the clutches of death in the days when his sanity was perfectly fine. Ginny was sniffling slightly and Ron could understand why.
When they actually arrived at 's, the hospital staff seemed to already know who they were and what the gloomy occasion was seeing as to how they'd been here in this fashion time and time again.
"Ron" Hermione said quietly, "I'm scared to see him."
"Me too" Ron murmured.
He patted her arm supportively as a nurse led their way to the section where the permanent hospital residents resided. Although she need not have. Most of the group gather round came to see him in the same room at least three times in an average and Christmas was a must.
Ron could sympathize with Hermione though because she had never seen this once, strong wizard locked in a cage of insanity. She'd only seen him portrayed in one way and for her to suddenly seem him portrayed in something completely opposite was quite something.
They were all led to the final door and when it was opened Hermione faltered a few steps and had to lean on Ron for support. Ginny, Luna, Mrs. Weasley, Daphne, Fleur and Penelope all shielded their eyes with their hands.
"Oh dear god..."
Author's Note: Da Da Da! Wondering why Hermione didn't comment on Ron's present? Or who they're visiting? OR anything else? Well I'm not telling! And none of you will find a single thing out until after two months or maybe earlier! Seeing as to how generous I feel! Wow! This is it! I, winkywink, am officially on HIATUS. I hope you hear from you all when I return from Asia!
xoxo
Winkylove
(p.s. To put in detail I will be leaving on October 2nd and returning on November 20th. I cannot post a chapter on Friday because I have to go to a concert and my dad has cut the internet off because we won't be here!)